Printed Electronics USA 2010 and Photovoltaics USA 2010 to Showcase Latest Innovations

By David Savastano

As Printed Electronics USA 2010 and Photovoltaics USA 2010 prepares to open at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA, on Dec. 1, there are plenty of advances and innovations in the field of printed electronics to be seen.

If pre-registration figures are a good indicator, then PE and PV USA 210 should be a success. According to Raghu Das, CEO of IDTechEx, as of Nov. 19, 833 people had pre-registered for the conference, ahead of previous years. If the traditional walk-up attendance is an indication, the show will break 1,100 unique attendees, according to Das.

There are plenty of end-users, suppliers and researchers on hands to discuss the latest advancments. The conference, organized by IDTechEx, features talks by Boeing, JCDecaux, Crayola, TOTAL S.A. – Gas and Power, MWV Packaging, US Army ARDEC and NREL. Concurrent sessions include end-users such as The Kraft Group and Cubic Security Systems.

Printed electronics manufacturers are also well represented, with Thin Film Electronics, Kovio, PolyIC, Printechnologics, Soligie, GSI Technologies, Zed-Studio and T-Ink among the speakers.

One of the new features at PE and PV USA 2010 is “Demonstration Street,” an area that will showcase many different types of working printed electronics products, ranging from commercial products to prototypes. This allows companies to see first-hand what PE is capable of.

Along those lines, NovaCentrix will be displaying its SimPulse, a thermal simulator program that determines how the pulsed output from the tools affects the thermal profile of each individual layer in a thin film stack of the product being processed. The company will be conducting live SimPulse simulations at its booth.

Each of the fields where PE may come into play are well represented. OLED and display sessions feature industry leaders such as LG Display, Universal Display, Add-Vision, isiQiri interface technologies, Bayer MaterialScience – Artificial Muscle, E Ink, SiPix Imaging. Cambridge Display Technology, Kent Displays, Liquavista and Sun Chemical.

Photovoltaics feature talks by industry leaders such as IBM, Dyesol, SolarPrint, Plextronics, Ascent Solar and HelioVolt.

Laminar batteries are covered by The Paper Battery Company, Cymbet and Planar Energy Devices.

Day 2 features presentations from a wide variety of companies, covering areas ranging from textiles and healthcare to printed RFID and materials, with presenters including companies like Daetwyler R&D and NovaCentrix.

Exhibitors

PE and PV USA 2010 is also doing quite well in terms of exhibitors, with at last 85 booths on hand. There should be an impressive array of new products on hand.

For example, Eric Serenius, vice president of Daetwyler R&D, said that his
company’s booth will feature its AccuPress Microgravure Printing Systems. He added that Daetwyler is looking forward to valuable contact time with current and future customers.

Aside from SimPulse, NovaCentrix is also exhibiting Metalon ICI-020, the company’s new copper screen printing ink, a follow-up to NovaCentrix’s award-winning copper oxide-based conductive inkjet ink.

“The PE USA event is a critical event for us, as it is a venue for us to bring out our latest tools and materials developments,” said Stan Farnsworth, vice president of marketing for NovaCentrix.